By Omowumi Johnbull, Compliance Manager
It is an organizational obligation to minimize its impact on the environment and act and make decisions that benefit society. This includes consideration for Environmental Sustainability, Social Justice, Human Rights, Community Engagement and Development, and Ethical Business Practices.
At Solar Sister, we are committed to embedding environmental and social consciousness into our DNA, ensuring our operations minimize harm and contribute to a better world. Our new environmental and social responsibility policy creates clear expectations for our staff and us, as an organization, on what it takes to be a good steward for the people we seek to serve: our beneficiaries, our employees, and the global population.
This new policy will guide us to ensure Solar Sister is a safe space, to internally contribute to environmental improvements and climate change solutions, and be an example to similar organizations on how to be a positive force in our impacts and operations.
We know that a strong internal ESR policy benefits everyone, including Solar Sister, as an organization.
We’ve identified five key things that come from this policy:
- Protects the planet for future generations – We do not want to dilute our impact by having high operational carbon costs and footprints; our ultimate goal is to conserve the usage of ecosystem resources in our daily operational activities.
- Supports long-term business growth and sustainability – By prioritizing ESR, we support the development of sustainable products and services that meet evolving customer needs and contribute to a stable and prosperous future, ensuring the ongoing success of our business operations.
- Encourages innovation and competitiveness within our business industry – By embracing ESR, we drive our business growth and sustainability through sustainable technological solutions that meet evolving customer needs and preferences and adapt to new business models and revenue stream generation through sustainable solutions.
- Meets our stakeholder’s expectations (customers, employees, donors partners, etc.) – ESR helps us build strong relationships with local communities, NGOs, and government agencies, attract and retain top talent, as employees increasingly expect to work for responsible and sustainable organizations, demonstrate accountability and transparency to customers, donors, and partners.
- Enhances Organizational reputation and brand value – By embracing environmental and social sustainability, our reputation as a responsible and forward-thinking organization is strengthened. This also increases our brand recognition, loyalty, and trust among our staff, customers, stakeholders, and the community.
Committing to ESR principles and working to develop an organizational culture that prioritizes them is not something we do just as an organization.
Our action contributes to the larger sector because:
- Drives sustainable development and resource management – Setting ourselves to an internal standard shows that development organizations are not resting on the idea that doing good is enough that we commit to being good.
- Promotes ethical leadership and responsible business practices – ESR helps us Foster a culture of integrity, transparency, and accountability; ensure fair labor practices, diversity, and inclusion; align our strategies and operations with the 17 SDGs in addressing global challenges such as poverty, inequality, and climate change, etc.
- Encourages transparency and accountability – Increased transparency and accountability means sharing our successes and offering an example of what the sector can do.
- Supports community development and social cohesion –Trust across organizations is increased when internal workings and principles are shared publicly. These partnerships with community organizations, Leaders, and stakeholders build synergy to contribute to a more equitable and just society.
- Fosters innovation and collaboration – Good ESR includes sharing your found successes with others seeking the same goal. It puts more best practices and learnings into the world instead of siloing them, creating a cycle of constantly improving organizational practices.
Embracing Environmental and Social Responsibility fosters a culture of innovation, collaboration, and transparency, driving sustainable growth and positive impact. By prioritizing sustainability, Solar Sister and many other organizations can unlock new opportunities, build strong relationships with stakeholders, and contribute to a more equitable and regenerative future.